


A sign of protest

by prettyboy_bucky



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: M/M, One Shot, gay protest signs, larry - Freeform, protest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-06
Updated: 2015-06-06
Packaged: 2018-04-03 02:12:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4082731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/prettyboy_bucky/pseuds/prettyboy_bucky
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Louis has a mind numbing job but it's okay because there's a protest outside and he grows attached to a cute boy with funny signs</p>
            </blockquote>





	A sign of protest

Louis was on his way to work.

He'd always felt out of place walking the streets in his uniform but it was either pointless or too expensive to buy a car. He'd long forgotten the reason.

The hotel where he waited at was across the road from a government building. The government work employees more often than not the ones to clutter up the tables. All pretending to look busy scribbling in notebooks with fancy pens, not wanting anybody to be aware of their detest for their dreary work. Not letting it show that they were anything less than happy.

Louis was used to a few people angrily marching by shouting from time to time but today was different. There was at least 20 men and women all ages holding signs protesting. well most of them were. Some were simply sat drinking coffee, signs laid over their legs, some just sat or stood staring into each other's eyes, lazily kissing in an act of pretend protest. He tried to ignore it but when more started chanting he took a quick glance. Spotting someone worriedly hurrying into the governing building.

It probably wasn't even her fault. In fact based on her attire Louis guessed she most likely worked for parks and recreation or something of the sort.

One sign board caught Louis' eye as he went back to heading to work.

"IF GOD DIDNT LIKE GAYS WHY DOES THE SEX FEEL GOOD?"

Louis almost dropped his coffee cup. The sign he was still staring at was being held by a young lad maybe twenty at most. He was pretty subdued compared to the others. But he had a look on his face that told Louis he truly cared about what he was doing. Louis glanced down at his long legs and glittery boots and flowery shirt which had the majority of the buttons undone. He was the image of homosexuality. He found it quite endearing really.

As he tried to look away the lad was looking at him. His expression softer. Less angry. As he smirked at Louis, Louis felt himself blushing and shook his head as he went inside the hotel.

Why was a glittery booted flowered shirt boy with a smirk making him blush?

By the time he left that evening he was exhausted, quick tempered and the boy had gone.

 

The next day Louis has swapped in his coffee for tea. Not that it mattered. The boy was back. But that didn't matter either.

The same amount of people were there as previously, plus some. The boy had a different sign today which Louis found quickly

"IF BEING GAY IS WRONG WHY DID I BUY THIS SHIRT IN THE MENS SECTION?"

He knew it belonged to the boy just by the sign. And sure enough holding the pole was the boy, today wearing a see through shimmery flowered shirt. The two buttons holding it together seemingly pointless. He caught Louis' eye just like the previous day. And Louis winked at him. "HARRY!" Someone yelled and the boy jumped and turned away to join in with the shouting.

Harry... Louis thought. What was he doing winking at boys at least 5 years younger.

 

The next day, to his own annoyance, Louis immediately zoned in on one sign inparticular. Today reading:

"I love rainbows does that make me the embodiment for gays?"

Louis grinned. Yes. Yes it did. Look at him. Yellow shorts for which it was far too cold for. A multicoloured shirt like all the days before. And mismatching shoes. Harry grinned back at Louis and like the day before, somebody snapped at him "OI Styles! stop eye fucking strangers" to which Harry laughed, blowing a kiss to Louis who just stood there.

He was behind the bar today and at about four o'clock Louis glanced up when the door banged open. Only to catch a sight of Harry stood there smiling, despite looking completely your of place in the room full of fake men and women in suits pretending to be busy.

"Er hi" Louis said before finally getting his bearings about him "hi what can I get you?" "Er" Harry started how Louis had, "3 lattes, 2 teas, 1 hot chocolate, 2 caramel frapachino and 1 strawberry lemonade" he read off his hand. "Let me guess, you're the lemonade?" Louis asked and Harry lit up "how'd you guess?" He asked inoccently and Louis laughed. "Embodiment of gays" he said and Harry's face changed. Don't worry, er I'm actually gay too" Louis tried to reassure him. It worked.

"Hey Harry? Want some help with that?" Louis asked as he watched Harry try to balance paper cups on top of each other "you know my name but I don't know yours" Harry said unloading some cups into Louis' hands. "Louis" he said and Harry smiled as he led Louis out to the protest.

 

Louis and Harry were undefined friends from then on. They weren't on sitting close together watching movies without it being weird friends but they were chatty and close in the way you can just be comfortable in somebody else's company.

Harry came into get drinks most days. A new flowery shirt or sometimes a headband everyday. "You're out there protesting for your rights and I'm here serving posh twats" Louis sighed one day. "I've never really known what to do with my life" he admitted to Harry unprompted, much to Harry's surprise as they carried out 15 different drinks between them. "At least you've got the pretty face" Harry replied and what kind of response was that?

Louis wasn't in the business of lying to himself but when his crush on Harry kept developing he tried all he could go bury it down. To no avail. Every morning Harry was there, sometimes loitering near Louis' work instead of wrapped up with the rest of his group.

It'd been almost two weeks and why they were still protesting Louis didn't know. Although he knew he dreaded the day he'd no Longer see Harry waving cardboard sign posts around. Louis would miss his presence, just knowing he was out there protesting what what he believed in was beautiful to Louis.

10 days after the first time he'd seen Harry, he had yet another great sign. One which stuck in Louis' mind like the first few had.

"I can't believe we still have to protest this crap"

Harry was sat on the floor holding this sign. He still looked determined yet sad. Louis' heart fluttered and he just wanted to bundle him up and protect him, tell him that it didn't matter if the world was against him, they'd be okay and that's all that mattered.

Louis wanted to go over to him but instead went through the hotel doors as always. He made a decision then and there that he needed to stop bottling his feelings and tell Harry.

Harry didn't go into the cafe that day. Louis wasn't disappointed. Not in the slightest. He took him out a strawberry lemonade on his way out. Harry smiled wearily, a little broader when he noticed the tiny heart on the side of his cup. Not that Louis drew it there. Now why would he have done that?

 

The next morning Louis arrived a little later than usual. It was his day off. So there was only really one reason for him being there. Harry was stood with a more upbeat sign than the day before that read:

"if being gay is wrong why are we so cute?"

 Louis grinned like a fool, catching Harry's eye like practically every morning. In Harry's hand was something rolled up. Another sign?

When he saw Louis he moved out of the crowd towards him stopping at the edge of the crowd and turning his sign around:

"if gays are wrong why is _that_ guy so cute?"

Louis smiled but then Harry laid it down. He started unrolling the large white piece in his hands glancing up at Louis when it was unrolled:

"I'm in love with Louis"

Louis felt his heart momentarily stop, feeling like his blood froze as he tried not to praise fucking God. He studied Harry's wary face, anxious for some kind of response. Louis raised one eyebrow, unrolling the poster in his hands, seeing from Harry's face he hadn't noticed it beforehand.

"I'm in love with Harry styles"

Harry lit up incredibly similarly to how Christmas trees do when the town had their annual 'turning on the lights display' so much so Louis was surprised when a chorus of happy applause didn't ring out.

Harry was dropping his poster and running over to Louis taking him out from the daydream of Harry wrapped in Christmas lights. As Harry leapt up to him. Louis wrapped him up in his arms before leaning up to kiss him. When Harry's tongue pushed towards Louis' lips Louis let him in kissing him deeply to the sound of applause behind them. And finally it felt like Christmas.

 

The next day Louis woke up with Harry still soundly sleeping peacefully beside him. His mess of hair all over the place. He had stayed with Harry all day the previous day until he insisted on cooking him dinner. Besides, how had they managed to fall in love without a single date.

Despite Louis' confidence his attempt at baking involved a lot of burning and weird colours. Harry had been watching him, "love, you're cute but please... Let me" he took over and by the end they were sat eating spaghetti bolognase because Louis had "like nothing in your cupboards, what do you even eat".

Louis skipped work that day. Instead he went with Harry and stood with a sign that read:

"if being gay is wrong why was I blessed with this lovely boy?"

Beside him was Harry who held one saying:

"if this is not what nature intended why am I so happy?"

 

\-----

2 years later

"Harry, the moment I saw you I knew you were special and while I cared what people thought too much you just cared for what you believed in. You have helped cause some real change around here, I never had much passion for all too much but if you'll let me I want to spend the rest of my life being passionate about you, marry me?"

And if the sound of Christmas light applause was music to Louis' ears, then the sound of wedding bells sounded like somebody was handing him the sun.

And it sounded amazing.

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first one shot I've written so let me know if I did an okay job... :)


End file.
